Apparatus for and method of cooking oil-bearing material.



. A. W. FRENCH. v

APPARATUS FOR AND METHOD OF COOKING OIL BEARING MATERIAL.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 17, 1908. 1,000,675, Patented Aug. 15, 1911;

f M/ a/ a/ v Mfr 51. J i:

Armani) wfrnENcH, or Home, OHIO.

APPARATUS FOBAND mn'rnon or oooxme OIL-BEARING MATERIAL;

Specification of Letters Patent; Patented Aug, 15, 1 911.

' Application filed November 17, 1908, Serial No. 463,101.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, ALFRED W. FRENCH, a citizen of the United States, residing at. Piqua, in the county of Miami and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Apparatus for and Methods of Cooking Oil-Bearing Material, of which the following is 'a specification.

This. invention relates to apparatus for and an improved method of cooking oilbearing meals preparatory to expressing the oil therefrom.

' The apparatus and method herein described are primarily intended for cooking cotton seed but are not necessarily restricted to this particular purpose.

The cookers heretofore most commonly used in cotton seed mills consist of several kettles arranged in ahorizontal series, and in the cooking operation the kettles have been filled and .emptied alternately, the meal remaining 'in the, kettles until cooked and then being discharged through conveyors,-

quickly heated practically tothe boiling point of water, after which the high temperature acts to drive ofi the moisture contained in the meal, necessitating the addition of water the seed is dry. Thisturns the -n1eal dark and adds color to the .oil, which increases the loss in refining. Great care is required in cooking the meal to prevent damage to the resulting product by leavin the meal too long a time in the kettles and to cook the charges in the different kettles alike. If the meal is left too green or wet, it will creep in the press and injure the press cloths, while, on the other hand, if suflicient moisture is not left in the meal to make a firm, compact cake, there will be a loss of oil. Thus the services of an experienced meal cook are required night and day. F ur-I thermore, considerable labor is. entailed in 'filling and discharging the kettles, and the kettles require a large amount, of floor space in the There are also cookers, used almost exclusively in linseed mills, in which the kettles are arranged one over the other and separated by intervening spaces, or in a stepped or staggered series, so that the tops of the kettles can be left open for the escape of the moisture driven off from the meal, but these arrangements require considerable vertical and floor space. Neither of these. types of cookers has provision for properly regulating the moisture of the cooked meal and the meal cannot be kept in the kettles for a sufliciently long time to be properly cooked at a moderate heat without seriously reducing the output of the mill.

The objects of this invention are to pro "duce an improved cooking apparatus for oil bearing meals in which the several'kettles,

canbe arranged one directly over and upon the other, thereby enabling the apparatus to be set up in a very much smaller space, provision being made for carrying oi the moisture as required according to the condition-of the meal; and to.provide an .improved continuous method of cooking oilbearing meal in which all of the meal can be uniformly cooked and themoisture thereof regulated as required, and the meal main tai-ned in the cooker for a long period of time at a moderate heat whereby the services of an experienced meal cook are dispensed with, the quality .of the product, both the oil and the oil cake, is improved, the yield of oil is increased, and the injury to the ress cloths is reduced.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a steam cooker embodying the invention and intended for carrying out the improved process of cooking meal. Fig. .2 is a fragmentary sectional elevation thereof, in line 22, Fig. 1. Like letters of reference refer to like parts in both figures. p A represents steam cooking kettles or chambers which are preferably arranged one directly over and upon the other, so that the four kettles, .all having hollow bottoms a forming steam chambers which are supplied with. steam by the usual or any suitable means (not shown) for cooking or heating the meal. The two upper kettles are preferably shallower thanthe, others and are provided with hollow'or-jacketed walls a also supplied with steam: for the purpose of quickly heating the meal therein to the required temperature.

partially filled, and whenever meal is drawn from the bottom kettle into the cake former,

a corresponding quantity of meal is caused to be delivered into the bottom kettle from the next kettle above, and in like manner the discharge of meal from each kettle causes a corresponding quantity of meal to be de live-red thereto from the kettle next above. Thus the quantity of meal in each kettle is kept substantially constant, and as the meal is delivered into the top and discharged from the bottom of each kettle without being mixed, it descends through the series of kettles in layers, and a definite period of time, depending upon the rate at which the meal is drawn from the bottom kettle, is required for any particular batch of meal to pass through the cooker, so that by drawing the meal from the'bottom kettle at regular intervals, all of the meal is uniformly cooked. The means shown for this purpose, are the same as disclosed in my application Serial No. 428,857, filed April 23,

1908, from which this case is divided, and

'. consist of dams or baflles C, one of which depends into the upper portion of each kettle at one side of the discharge opening of the next 'kettle' above. When the meal rises in the kettles substantially to the level of the lower edges of the dams therein, each dam, .as, more fully explained in my. said I application, causes the meal to pile up under the discharge opening of the kettle above and prevents the discharge of meal .therefrom until the level of the meal in the kettles is lowered by drawing meal fromthe bottom kettle. The quantity of meal in each kettle except the first is thus kept substantially uniform and an air space is always maintained between the meal in one kettle and the bottom of the kettle next above. Other suitable means may be employed for this purpose, such, for example, as disclosed in Patent No. 909,773, granted January 12, 1909, to M. W. Faherty, assignor to myself.

A large covered man-hole D is provided in the side ofeach kettle to afford access thereto. Vent holes D are'provided in the upper portion of each kettle or chamber for the escape of the moisture rising from the meal, the holes for each kettle being eral kettles to be controlled for the purposeof drawing off more or less moisture, according to the condition of the meal.

F represents a hot air supply pipe connecting. the ventholes at one side of the cooker with an air heater fof any suitable kind. The hot air pipe is provided with a damper g and with a cold air inlet opening controlled by a damper 9. By properly adjusting these dampers the air can be tempered as required.

The vent holes D which do not connect with the suction and hot air pipes are preferably provided with gates or valves h of any suitablesort for partially or wholly closing them. large and numerous to allow the escape of moisture from the mealwhen it is relatively dry, but when the vapor driven ofltfrom the meal cannot escape naturally through the vent holes D the valves for the holes between the exhaust and hot air pipes are closed to prevent-the admission of cold air,

which condenses the moisture and chills the meal, and the vapor is drawn ofi through the exhaust trunk E. When. the meal is very wet, hot air from the pipe F is drawn through the kettles by the exhauster for more rapidly drying the meal, the ,temperature of'the air being regulated according to the condition of the meal, by proper adjustments of the dampers g and g. The

air is heated to such a temperature'that it will not condense the vapor .in the kettles.

hen the seed is dry'the vent holes D can be closed so that the natural moisture in ture can be removed and the hot air sup: plied by a forced draft instead of by ex:

haustion.

The described means for maintaining the.

air spaces in the kettles above the .ineal and for carrying 05 the moisture, besldes enabling the regulation of the moisture of the meal asstated, enables the kettles to be placed directly over and upon each other,

These holes are sufliciently which obviates the necessity for the large a sary for a single kettle in the: horizontal arrangement.

' In the cooking process the meal passes in succession from one kettle to the next, the time required for the passage of every portion of meal being substantially the same. The meal is subjected'both at the bottom and 'the sides to the steam heat in W the two upper kettles, and the bottom of the top kettle also heats the top portion of the meal in the second kettle, so that as the quantity of meal in'these two kettles is relatively small the meal is quickly raised" to the necessary cooking temperature in the first two kettles. The steam pressure on the other kettles need be only suflicient to retain the meal at the temperature given it.

in the two upper kettles so as to retain the heat in the meal and allow it to cook practically by its own heat. As the lower kettles are of larger capacity than the upper ones, it requires longer for each portion of meal'to pass through these kettles, and the i0 meal is therefore cooked slowly in these kettles at a moderate heat for a longer time than it can be kept in the greater heat of "the upper kettles, which results in thoroughly softening the oil cells of the meal 5 so that they will more readily give up their oil under pressure, without either-driving off the necessary moisture or scorching or discoloring the meal. The long slow cooking of the meal also coagulates the albu- 0 men in the meal so that the meal will not creep in the press and burst the press cloths, as it does when'cooked more rapidly.

W'hile the described arrangement of" the kettles, one vertically over and directly upon 5 the other, is preferred for the reasons stated, yetthe described continuous process of cooking can be carried out with other an ra'ngel'nents'of the kettles so long as they are disposed in a descending series and have provision for regulating the quantity of meal therein, as stated.

I claim as my inventioni 1. The combination of closed cooking kettles or chambers for solid 5 material arranged in a descending series, means for heating said kettles to cook the material, means for,'automatically regulating the quantity of material insaid kettles to prevent the material from rising in the 0 kettles to the tops thereof, and means for admitting air to the upper portions of at least a part of said kettles at one side thereof and drawing the air from said kettles at a distance from ,the air inlets whereby the 5 air passes across the material in said kettles The height of thegcooker is,

a plurality of and the moisture is removed therefrom, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of a plurality of closed cooking kettles or chambers for solid material arranged in a descending series,

- means for heating said kettles to rock the material, means for automatically regulating the quantity of materlal 1n sald kettles to prevent the material from rising in the kettles to the tops thereof, and means for circulating dry air over the material in, at least a partof said kettles to carry oif the moisture from the material, substantially as set forth. v

3. The combination of a plurality of closed cooking kettles orchambersfor solid material arranged in a descending series,-

means for heating said kettles to cook the material, means for automatically regulatingthe quantity-of material in said kettles to, prevent the material from rising in thekettles to the tops thereof, means for exhausting air from the upper portions of atv least a part of saidk'ettles, and means for supplying air thereto and regulating the temperature of said air, substantially as set fort-h.

4. The combination of a plurality of, steam cooking kettles or chambers for solid material arranged one directly over and upon the other and having discharge openings so that each kettle can discharge into the one next below, means for automatically one kettle to another to regulate the quantity of material in said kettles and prevent the material from rising in the kettles to the tops thereof, .air admission openings in the upper portions'of at least a part of said kettles, and suction means connected to theterial having bottom discharge openings ar-.

ranged'for the material to discharge from one kettle to the kettle next below, and means which operate automatically to regulate the discharge of material from the sevcontrol-ling thedischarge of material from eral kettles except the lowest in accordance with the discharge from said lowest kettle, one or more of the lower kettles being of larger capacity than the kettle or kettles above the same, said lower kettles being heated to a lowertemperature than the oth-- ers, substantially as set forth.

6. The herein described continuous process of cooking oil-bearing material, consist ing in heating the material in a seriesof kettles and causing a quantity of the material to pass from one kettle to the next accordingly as the material is drawn fromthe last kettle, and causing a current of air to pass through at least a portion of said l kettles over'the material therein for regu lating the moisture of the material, substantially as set forth.

7. The herein described continuous process of cooking oil-bearing material, consisting in heating the material in a series of closedket-tles and causing a quantity of the material to pass from one kettle to the next accordingly as the material is drawn from the last kettle, and circulating heated air over the material in at least a portion of said kettles'to regulate the moisture of the material, substantially as set forth.

8. The herein described continuous process of cooking oil-bearing material, consisting in heating the material in a series of kettles and causing a quantity of the material'to pass from one kettle to the next accordingly as the material is drawn from the last kettle, bringing the material to the required temperature for cooking in the first one or more of the kettles, and maintaining larger quantities of the material in the last one or more of the kettles than in the first kettles at a heat such as to retain .the temperature imparted to the material in said first kettles, substantially as set forth.

9, The herein described continuous proc-' .ess of cook ng oil-bearing material, consist- %1ng in heat ng the material in closed kettles arranged in a descending series so that material is discharged from each kettle to the next lower-one" in the series accordingly as the material is drawn from the last-kettle,

preventing the material from rising in the tles arranged in a descending series so that; material is discharged from each kettle to i the next lower one in the series accordingly as the material is drawn from the last kettle, preventing the material from rising in the kettles to the tops'thereof, exhausting from the upper portions of at least a part of the kettles the moisture driven oil from and regulating the temperature of the air supplied, substantially as set forth.

the material, supplying air-to said kettles;

Witness my hand, this 14 day of Novem- 3-.

ber, 1908.

. ALFRED W. FRENCH. Witnesses:

C. B. JAMIsoN, Rosa TALBOT. 

